Bárkányi Ildikó - Lajkó Orsolya (szerk.): A Móra Ferenc Múzeum Évkönyve 2019. Új folyam 6. (Szeged, 2019)
Régészet - Varga Sándor: 10-11. századi cölöpszerkezetes temetkezések a Kárpát-medencében
Sándor Varga lOth-llth-century burials with timber post constructions lOth-llth-century burials with timber post constructions Sándor Varga The aim of my paper is to investigate the spatial distribution, types and chronological position of the small number of burials with timber post constructions that appear in Conquest Period and Árpád Period cemeteries, and to discuss briefly the problematic connections with similar burials from the previous period. The basis ofthe burial type is the simple shaft grave, which has, usually along its longer sides, semi-circular or angular protrusions of various depths, similar to postholes (Plates 1-2). From the Carpathian Basin we know 47 burials with timber post construction from 11 sites dated to the 10th-llth centuries (Plate 3). With regard to cemetery type, this form of burial is represented both in the cemeteries of villages (8 sites) and among the graves of the earliest horizon of church graveyards (3 sites). Based on the investigated cemeteries, if there are more than one grave with timber post structure, they tend to be grouped in one block or in smaller groups, often on the edges of the cemeteries, or slightly separated from the other burials. Based on the level of the appearance of the post-holes around the grave pit, we can distinguish three major types of burials with timber post construction. Based on the number and arrangement of the pit-holes, we may distinguish further variants (Plates 4-5). Because of the small amount of available data, the interpretation of this burial form and the exact definition of the ancient burial remains uncertain. Although researchers have come up with a number of explanations for the observed phenomena, the presence of some sort of a timber construction within the grave pit can be assumed primarily on the basis of Avar Period analogies. Due to this and the fact that in the period under study similar burials are not known east of the Carpathians, it may be suggested that this form of burial is a foreign element in the lOth-llth-century cemeteries whose roots are to be found in the Carpathian Basin. This seems to be supported by the physical anthropological data observed in the relevant burials of Homokmégy-Székes. However, the assumption that this lOth-llth-century burial custom can be traced back to Avar Period traditions is complicated by the chronological position of the relevant burials from the study period. The overwhelming majority of such burials can be dated to the 11th century, primarily its middle or later part. Only a few burials can be placed to the 10th century, and even these are not concentrated in a single region. 100
